


The Whole Wide World (Except For Me)

by Skull_Bearer



Series: Rousseau is Right [3]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Angst, Battle, Canonical Character Death, Dark, Democratic Executions, M/M, Post-Apocalypse, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), The People United Will not be Disintegrated, fuck thanos
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-10-05 14:10:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17326484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skull_Bearer/pseuds/Skull_Bearer
Summary: Eddie and Venom find themselves wandering the wreckage of the world after Thanos' massacre, hunting for the one responsible.





	1. Scour

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to dogmatix for the beta. Title is from 'Trinity' by Kill II This, one of the ultimate Venom songs.

The phone buzzes dully in Eddie’s hand.

He can feel Venom keeping an eye around them, turning his head this way and that, trying to see in all directions. “Quickly,” he hisses.

“Trying.” Eddie snarls under his breath. The phone vibrates. One last red bar blinks helplessly in the corner. There’s a click and Eddie pulls it to his ear, his heart ramming against his ribs _please please please_ -

“Hello-“

“Annie!” Eddie chokes in relief. “Thank fuck-“

“-you have reached my answering machine. Please leave a message-“ Then the phone cuts out.

“ _Fuck_!” Eddie pulls the phone away. God, it gets him every time, and all he has to show for it is another dead phone and no power to recharge-

But the phone is still going. Still blinking on 2%. Eddie’s guts go cold. He presses call again _\- no. Please please please-_

But it can’t go through. It’s not their phone, it’s her’s. Annie’s phone is dead. Annie never lets her phone run out-

“Eddie!”

Eddie’s head snaps up. The street is bare, nothing but the burnt out husks of cars, the trailing flags of scrap paper, pieces of cloth. The dust, stirring lazily across the tarmac like dry ice.

Venom pulls his head around, and Eddie sees them. There aren’t many people left in New York, the food ran out in the first few days. Eddie and Venom have been down to stray pets and rats.

These people don’t seem much better. Eddie gets up as they approach warily; they’re almost as thin as he is, dressed incongruously in beautifully tailored clothes. Venom has slipped back under Eddie’s skin, curled up warm inside him, pulsing calm and steady as his heart.

“Making a call?” The woman’s face is taut and hard, layers of makeup caking her filthy face. She’s carrying an old baseball bat over her shoulder.

“No answer.” Eddie tosses the phone at her feet. If she wants it, she’s welcome to it. He lets her look him over, picking out the clothes they’d found in church donation bin, the thin rail of a body still far too underweight despite Venom’s best efforts.

He sees her relax a little, whatever she’s looking for, she knows Eddie doesn’t have it, and he hardly looks like a threat. “We’re heading out of the city.” She jerks her thumb over her shoulder. “Power’s dying, and there’s no food. Might have more luck in the sticks.”

“Good luck.” Eddie slides his hands in his pockets.

“You’re staying?”

“Plenty of rats,” Eddie shrugs. “Less competition. I’m trying to contact someone.”

“Well hey, good luck.” She shrugs. “You need it more. If you come to your senses, we’ll be out north on 95.”

“Okay.” Eddie nods. “I need a computer. You know if anywhere still has power?”

She shrugs again. “A few in Manhattan, last I saw. Heard Stark Tower’s still going, but that’s locked down.”

Venom tenses inside him at the name, Eddie’s fists clench. “Okay,” He repeats, trying to keep his voice level. _Stark_. “Thanks for that.”

“Well, hope you-“ it’s not a sound. More like the sudden cessation of sound. Eddie can see her mouth moving, but can’t hear anything. It’s a low, sub-audible punch to both eardrums and he staggers. His legs buckle and he’s falling-

Venom wraps around him, and he hits softly, still-brittle bones cocooned in warm black flesh.  Eddie pushes himself upright. The woman’s down, stirring weakly. In the distance, a long column of black smoke is rising.

“Shit.” One of the woman’s group staggers over; pulls her up. “We gotta go!” He pulls.

Eddie shakes his head. The smoke is growing; it’s far out, too far to be in New York, but-

“Fuck.” Eddie breathes. The woman and the guy are trying to run, but the ground is still shaking with the aftershocks. _Fuck_ , he knew about this, didn’t he? One of the first goddamn articles he wrote for the Bugle. An investigative piece on the safety standards of-

“Indian Point.” Eddie groans. Fuck, with this much smoke all three reactors must have blown.

The two stare at him in disbelief, at Venom’s warm tendrils cloaking him. “The power plant!” Eddie snarls at them. “That’s fallout-“

“That’s the fucking thing that ate the president!” The guy is pulling at the woman frantically. “We need to go _now_ -“

The woman’s face is white with fear, backing away from Eddie like he’s about to spring at them. “You can’t go north,” Eddie tries desperately, “The radiation will be-“

It’s too late; they’re running, thousand dollar trainers beating the pavement. Eddie slumps inside Venom’s coils because- there’s no use. That explosion is a good three times the size of Chernobyl, more than a thousand times the size of Hiroshima. The woman and her people aren’t going to outrun it. _They_ can’t outrun it.

 _Keep us safe_ , Venom pulls free from his shoulder. “We need to find cover.”

“Yeah?” The cloud is growing; Eddie can’t help but just- stare at it. It’s too big. Chernobyl caused the evacuation of nearly three thousand square kilometers. What the hell is this going to-

“We can take vacuum and space radiation.” Venom says firmly. “We can protect us, but we can’t stay outside.”

Eddie can’t say anything. It’s too big. It’s _all_ too big. The explosion, the trailing dust that used to be people, the phone, ringing uselessly in his hand.

The Pain. The white shell of the lab. The screaming.

Part of him just wants to stand there, wait for the fallout to rain down and just- fall asleep, in the dust and ash. Just stop.

“Eddie!” Venom bites his shoulder, and Eddie jumps. “Move! Now!”

“Right.” Eddie shakes himself, and runs a hand gently over Venom’s head. “Sorry.”

Venom presses close to him, and Eddie starts walking. _Don’t think like that_ , Venom pleads in their head. _Please don’t_.

“Sorry.” Eddie says again.

So much of the city is burnt out. They need somewhere with doors and windows. Food, the rats and stray dogs are going to be contaminated soon enough. Water, they’re going to need a secure water source-

Venom hesitates. He’s realized it at the same time. _Eddie_ -

“He’s gone.” Eddie whispers, hugging himself. “You heard her. It’s locked down. We’ll be safe.”

Venom growls, deep inside his bone, reverberating through their shared heart. Eddie turns, and starts running towards Manhattan.

  

* * *

 

 

The cloud is massive now, blackening the entire north end of the sky. It only grows as they climb up the sheer side of Stark Tower, the thick planes of glass cracking under their claws. They could break their way in, but there are heavy metal shutters behind the glass. They might be able to break through that but-

The cloud, the first taste of something burning in the back of their mouth.

They don’t have time. There’s some kind of landing strip at the top, maybe they can find their way in from there.

Finally, their claws slam over the top of the building, digging into gleaming chrome and steel. It’s a landing strip, alright. But not for a helicopter. Plates slide open and metal arms wave in mid-air, searching for a suit of armor that isn’t there. Venom snarls, and wraps around Eddie’s head, biting off a metal arm and leaving the remaining strut sparking and jerking uselessly in mid-air.

“Boss?” Eddie tenses, Venom pulls away so they can see through four eyes- but there’s nothing. No one. A voice from nowhere. “Is that you, boss?”

“Who is this?” Eddie snarls. The doors are open and they scuttle in, turning quickly to find a way to close them before any more of the fallout gets in.

“You’re not allowed in here!” The voice is coming from the ceiling. Some kind of intercom.

“Yeah, whatever. You looked out there?” Eddie waves at the gaping door, the blackening sky. “If you don’t want to die of radiation poisoning, get these closed!“ Eddie grunts, he gets Venom’s claws into the door metal, and they heave, dragging it a few inches. Too slow.

For a moment, there’s nothing. The wind blows a few scraps of dust into the room. Just dust- or something else. Then the doors slam shut, dragging Eddie backward and tearing their claws. Eddie doubles over, clutching his throbbing hands to his chest and swearing. Venom’s claws withdraw and he laps over Eddie’s bleeding fingernails. “Shit.”

“You’re not supposed to be here.” The voice- a woman’s voice, is strangely steady.

“And where are we supposed to be?” Eddie snarls. “Screaming in a cell-“ he can’t go on, his throat closes. Venom wraps around him, calms their racing heart.

“Where is Mr Stark?”

“How the fuck should we know?” Eddie looks around, the lights are still on here, the computers glimmering with life. Eddie hurries over to one, turns it on.

“What are you doing?”

“We need to find someone.”

“Please, wait, you need to talk to me.” The computer shuts down. Venom roars, reaches to tear the computer to pieces. Eddie clenches their fists. _No, not yet._

“You’re not a person, are you?” Eddie looks around. “You’re one of Stark’s pet robots.”

“My name is FRIDAY. Who are you?”

Eddie hesitates, “Venom.” He says finally.

“What is happening outside, Mr Venom?”

“The power plant just blew, there’s radioactive fallout everywhere.”

“No, before that. The death, the ash everywhere. Mr Stark went to stop the aliens; and then- everyone. They just-“

Ash. Dust. “Yeah.” Eddie fiddles with the computer, “We need to find someone. We need to know-“ it switches on. “Thanks.”

“Who do you need to find?” Eddie types Annie’s name into the google search. Please, the servers have to still be going. The power’s dying across the state, probably the whole country but Google has to have backups and backups of backups-

Her facebook hasn’t been touched for weeks. Her LinkedIn for more than a year. She’s never had a twitter. Eddie sends her a message, helplessly, hopelessly over facebook. _Annie, this is Eddie. We’re in New York. Are you okay? Please, we’re trying to call you and your phone-_

“Sourcing the last known footage of Anne Waying-“ the computer starts, then cuts out. The display flickers. Eddie opens his mouth about to demand to see for her to _tell them_ -

But he can’t. Because that long, hideous silence, the crack and spit from the speakers- that says it all. He knew. They both did, and neither of them could admit it. Venom coils around his shoulders, slips between his fingers and squeezes. Eddie closes his eyes. _God, no_.

Venom doesn’t say anything, just curling tighter around them, clinging tight as though Eddie too would fly away to ash if he let go. Eddie presses his cheek tight against Venom’s head, closes his eyes. “What happened?” He says finally, “What- who did this?”

The monitor flickers again, and shows a grainy, uncertain image. Some kind of battle, with spears and laser blasts. “What-“

“This is all I was able to scrape up before the satellites died.”

It takes Eddie a moment to work out what it is. Aliens, bestial and mindless, hurling themselves against people armed with weapons that jump straight from bronze age to futuristic without stopping in between, and there, standing the middle of it-

The blurry giant knocks the people around him down like insects, raises a hand and-

And the world blurs out with ash.

“Do you know this thing?” Eddie whispers to Venom.

“No.” Venom’s breath is soft against his cheek. “But I- we had heard of it. One whose hunger was greater even than our own. Who would devour the universe, and everything in it, and leave nothing but death.”

Eddie shudders, his fingers digging into Venom’s flesh. “How many-“ he stumbles, then swallows and tries again. “How many died?”

“It’s hard to estimate.” The computer admits. “But- on limited data, approximately 50% of all living things.”

The world rocks from under Eddie’s feet. It’s- too big. It had been too big before but this- the images flash in front of him as the computer pours them in- entire forests turned to ash, huge dust storms building up as the plants holding the soil together died, whole areas of the sea poisoned by fish floating belly up-

“ _Stop!”_ Venom roars, and that’s the last straw and Eddie’s still uncertain legs give up entirely.

He falls down hard on his backside, chokes in pain as his brittle bones fracture. Venom hisses, and pours into him, sealing him back together, pouring strength into his muscles.

Eddie closes his eyes. God but- that was what they were trying to stop, wasn’t it? Only nothing the murderous CEOs, the corrupt billionaires, the grasping politicians could have dreamed up could come close to this. This was-

“This- is the end, isn’t it?” A hacked gasp of laughter escapes his throat. “We’re not getting out of this. We’ll starve or be poisoned or-“

“The oxygen levels in the air have changed.” The computer says finally. “There are not enough plants left, and those that survive are dying due to loss of soil bacteria-”

Eddie wavers, not sure if he’s going to fall down the rest of the way and curl up uselessly on the floor. Venom’s wrapping around him, desperately promising they’d be okay, they’d survive, he’d keep them alive-

And oh fuck but Venom had loved this world, hadn’t he? In all it’s stupid, blundering glory. Eddie had wanted to keep it beautiful for him. He’d wanted to keep it going, protect all the good things in it for them to enjoy. They’d gone out to hunt, more and more reckless because it wasn’t just feeding, it was bigger than them; they were making the world better and now-

Eddie stops, and sits up. He looks at the computer. “Where did that happen?”

“In Wakanda.” The computer said, “On the eastern outskirts.”

“Okay.” Eddie slowly makes his way to his feet. “Can you make a broadcast? To every TV channel still running, all the radio stations, everywhere on the internet.”

“I do not have permission-“ a pause, “Yes. I can.”

Venom snags them a chair, pulls it over for them to sit it. He must have felt what Eddie was thinking, because he nods, pressing close against Eddie until Eddie digs his fingers into him- the one anchor he has left in the world.

 _Oh God, Annie_ -

“This is too big for us.” He says softly. “But it’s not bigger than all of us.”


	2. Scent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are less than three billion people left in this world. All of them are going to Wakanda.

The sky is growing black behind them as they leave the tower. “We need a ride.”

**_We are a ride_**. Venom retorts. **_We can do it. Don’t need help._**

Eddie nods and relaxes into him, feeling Venom well up inside him; flowing through his skin, stiffening his fragile bones, swelling his worn muscles. Their teeth close over his head, bared and slipping free in their eternal smile and Venom is pressing closer, closer _closer_ until there’s nothing between them, pressed mind to mind, cell to cell until-

Until there’s no longer Vee and Eddie, but _Venom_ , Venom as both of them, huge and strong and maybe leaner than they were before, but so much more than there were as two.

And the fears wash away, the memories of the Pain fragment and blow into the dying breeze. They are calm and strong and _one_ , and there is nothing they fear. They lift their head, their tongue lolling and tasting the coming death of the fallout. They need to go.

“ ** _Ten miles to JFK International.”_** They growl. They scale a few stories up the Tower, and launch themselves out, strands of themselves snapping out and catching on the skyscrapers, swinging out between the buildings, skimming the ruins of the city below.

There’s a crawling sorrow from their Eddie-part, remembering what the city was, what it used to be. How wonderful this would be to do in a living city.  The cars and the people and the lights-

**_“There-“_** They’re just crossing the bridge when they see the first one. A little knot of people, armed with clubs, heading south to Long Island. They start and pull away as Venom swing over them- but they don’t run, and even from here, they can read the determination in their eyes, the fury.

They grin, and swing on over the blacktop, towards the airport.

 

* * *

 

 

The news has spread by the time they reach the airport, and the place is a madhouse. Someone’s managed to get hold of a few fuel trucks and the runway is a hive as people who have barely half an idea of what’s happening try and get the planes up and flying.

No one looks at them twice as they arrive, Venom coils up inside Eddie just in case, but honestly they could swing in, tongues and dicks out, and Eddie doubts anyone would even pay attention. A bunch of army units have marched in from Hamilton, trying to maintain order and enlisting anyone who asks. There are pilots rushing back and forth, finding anyone who knows how to fly. Everything is screams, shouts and yelling, but it’s clear all the same.

They’re all going to die. And before they do, they’re going to go and make those responsible pay.

Eddie remembers a sociology story once, about what people would do at the end of the world. It had been suggested humanity would go quietly, with dignity. Spending time with loved ones before disappearing into the night.

He’d hated that story. This one’s much better. Screaming, fighting chaos but still united, one in rage. Whatever happened to them, they would make sure no one would prosper from their deaths.

Some dipshit’s taken a spray can to the departures screen, covering them with one massive scrawl.

_WAKANDA OR BUST_

**_I like your species_**. Venom smiles inside him. **_Riot never stood a chance, did he?_**

“Yeah, we’re scrappy little bastards when we’re pissed.” Eddie looks around for somewhere to go. “Especially when we’ve got nothing to lose. Let’s find a plane.”

They walk right through security for the first time in eighteen years. Eddie gives the metal detectors a long look, then down at his hand. Venom knows what he’s thinking and Eddie’s fingers extend into the familiar glossy claws.

The metal detector makes a satisfying little crunching noise as they snaps it in half. Someone behind them cheers- probably a fellow TSA victim. Eddie turns and grins, letting Venom’s teeth fill in the missing gaps in his teeth. The man recoils and pales, Venom tries to reassure him by smashing the X-ray machine, but the moment is gone, everyone is just- staring.

Eddie rubs his knuckles- their knuckles- over their chest, through the shirt and Venom’s smooth flesh patching the hole in his chest. There are soldiers, staring at them, and- what if they were there? How many of them escaped the prison too? This time, his smile has all of Venom’s teeth. _No. Stay away_.

When they step forwards, the crowd parts, backing away and- fuck it. They’re not doing this alone.

It’s becoming more and more of a relief to slide back into _them_. His shattered body bulking out into their lean form, Venom solidifying into strength and force. Strong, confident, fearless. Everything they are not, separately.

Now, they have a circle ten feet across to themselves in the crowded airport. More of the soldiers are shuffling towards them, glancing back desperately to their remaining officers. They ignore them, ignore Venom’s clenched fear, Eddie’s urge to look back and check- there is nothing here that can hurt them. Even if the soldiers did have the sonic weapons what had torn them apart before, that would just kill them. What do they have to fear?

Someone is coming closer and they pause in mid-step. The woman is pale, but by her Lieutenant’s stripes, she’s probably the highest ranking person here. They stop, and look down at her, waiting.

She swallows; looks up into their face, their teeth. “You’re- the thing that killed the president.”

“Yes.” They rumble, “Before he could become a dictator. You’re welcome.”

“We’ve lost enough people.” Her hands clench on her gun. “I don’t care how tough you think you are. Anything that sides with that- monster in Wakanda dies. You can’t kill all of us.”

_Oh_.

They- hadn’t thought of that. They shiver for a moment, threatening to split apart but- no. They can’t, not yet. The Avengers had known about the monster, has suspected it had been behind so many attacks. Eddie had dismissed it at Stark’s paranoia-

But it’s not paranoia if they’re really out to get you. And here had been Eddie and Venom, eating their way through the leaders of the world. The corrupt and murderous leaders, yes but, maybe they can see why Stark and the boy had- overreacted.

_We should have left a note_. Eddie-part mumbles. _Told them what we were doing_.

“We will kill it.” They say instead. “We eat bad guys. Where’s the plane?”

The Lieutenant hesitates, but there’s something evaluating in her eyes as they dart from their teeth to their claws. Fear, yes, but also a tactician’s eye. And here, there are no superheroes or- whatever Eddie and Venom are.

“We need as many people as we can, and you won’t fit in the seats.” She frowns, “Can you go in cargo?”

Where they can be dropped from a great height if they try anything; they let that slide. “We know how to fly.” They smile, “If you need pilots?” Only from the pilot they had eaten, and those only fighter jets, but how hard can a commercial jet be?

Probably very difficult, but by the look on the Lieutenant’s face, she’s not going to care. They need everyone they can get. Her jaw flexes as she grits her teeth. “Fine. I need a co-pilot, and we need to get the planes off before the fallout hits us.”

 

* * *

  

They can’t fly into Wakanda, not quite. The plane limps into Niger airspace, rapidly losing altitude. Too many people, not enough fuel. When they look behind them, there are people sitting in the aisles between the seats, crammed up in the luggage racks. The Lieutenant has been swearing under her breathing pretty much since they took off, sweating through her uniform. She looks at them and scowls, “If you’re so calm, you can manage the fucking radio.”

Half of it is in French. They pick up the phrase _aeroport Maradi_ , and hope that’s not a suffix to the sentence ‘no one should go near-‘. “Maradi airport.” He relates.

Lieutenant nods, adjusts the controls. The aeroplane lurches down, coming down in shuddering jerks. Their Eddie-part remembers previous flights, if this was the landing everyone would be screaming. But the plane is eerily silent, a sort of brittle determination. Not just the soldiers but the civilians as well, everyone still and ready.

How many people had they lost? So many that even the possibility of the plane crashing was- meaningless. Maybe a release. They had lost Annie and Dan but if they had lost each other- if they were _alone_ -

Then the one left behind would probably aim the plane at the ground, and welcome the dark with open arms. They shiver, huddle closer together, a little more _one_.

“Oh fuck me.” The Lieutenant moans.

The airport is _packed_. It’s only got one airstrip, and plane after plane are packed so close the wings are overlapping. Smoke is rising where several have crashed. Planes from everywhere- Europe and China, Australia and Brazil. Military planes too, huddles of tanks airlifted in.

“Fuck oh fuck oh fuck-“ she mutters low under her breath as the plane turns slowly- too slowly. A burst of black smoke momentarily blurs the windscreen and their legs tense under them. If they have too, they can claw their way out of the cabin and take the fall to the ground-

“Don’t you dare run.” The Lieutenant grits out, and jerks her head at the headpiece. “Put that on. ‘AL47 looking to land, over.’”

“Roger.” They growl.

The plane bucks, losing more height. They’re too far down the runway, the asphalt cutting off far too soon. They can’t speak, nothing in the headset but the Lieutenant’s ragged breathing. Between then, Eddie is whispering _oh shit shit shit_ \- he wants to close their eyes-

The wheels hit the ground like a rocket going off under them. Someone in the back shrieks- but then it’s cut off. The plane shudders and threatens to rear back up, juddering off the end of the runway and into the tussocky grass beyond.

“Please please please-“ Lieutenant chants.

They manage another hundred meters over the bare ground before the wheel hits something, kicks like a gunshot and buckles. A wing scythes into the ground. They’re going slowly enough that it doesn’t snap at once, and the plane is dragged into a tight circle before the wing finally breaks and the plane slides over onto its side, landing with a long, drawn out crunch of relief, as though it too wants to kiss the ground.

“Okay.” The Lieutenant gasps, unbuckling herself and sliding out to stand on the wall. “Get the doors open, people!”

“This is our stop.” They growl, and tear out the windscreen. The hot dry air punches through and claws them in the face, the earth beyond is bare and brown, the plants already desiccated and dead.

They remember the images of Stark’s tower, the dying world. For a moment, they don’t want to move. Stay in here, where at least people are _alive_. Still here, not gone-

They bare their teeth, daring death to do its worst, and dive out through the windscreen.

 

* * *

 

Maybe it was the buildings in New York, hiding the reality of what had happened. Yes, they ash was ankle-deep in places, you couldn’t escape it, but if they stayed up, high above, it still felt- normal.

Here, the buildings are low, and there’s nothing to hide the ash. It blows up in columns, in stuttering duststorms that hangs over the city like rainclouds that never break. The earth is starting to flake to sand under their feet, the grass dead and crumbling. Trees dead and stark against the browning sky. There are no birds.

And it’s so- so _big_. Too much, too terrifying. They sink down to the dead earth and shatter, unable to hang together any more. Eddie’s sharp knees dig into ash, the dust. He lowers his head and draws in a breath, two, three. With his eyes closed, the world still sounds normal. People shouting, the roar of engines. Normal.

But dear God for how _long_? How long do they have? They could have asked Friday, but- hadn’t dared. Not long. Every breath they take won’t be replaced, slowly wearing away at a now terrifyingly finite resource.

Even in the worst possibilities, no one had imagined this. Even the most damage humanity could do to the world wouldn’t be worse than what the world had already weathered. There would still be cockroaches, ants, algae in the sea, jellyfish. Not this. Not a dead, barren brown world, mindlessly spinning through space.

**_Eddie_**. Venom murmurs inside him, **_Need to do this. Need to make it pay_**.

“Yeah.” He whispers, and struggles to his feet, “It won’t live long enough to see us die.”

**_Not going to die!_ **

Maybe they won’t. Maybe they’ll be left here, wandering across the ruined world, watching everything around them slowly suffocate or starve.

Venom has no answer to that.

“Come on.” Eddie sighs. It’s morning here, and the jetlag makes his head spin. The sun is just above the horizon, so that’s east. Wakanda is south. “Still a way to go, sweetheart.”

They try and pull back together and- can’t. Venom blotches over him in pieces, not quite managing to fit together. They can feel it, so close but _not quite_. Too tired, too many hours already spent together. Eddie grits his remaining teeth, feels Venom’s teeth prick his gums. Okay. Then we’re walking.

His body aches after a few minutes of walking. His joints ache, like a car with the suspension broken. In the distance, a road shimmers in the already searing heat, a hovering mirage of asphalt just above the ground.

**_Need a ride_**.

“Yeah.” Eddie licks his dry lips. “Sorry this one’s not holding up too good.”

**_Classic, vintage_**. Venom kisses his lips from inside, making him smile. **_Just needs a bit of love_**.

“Love you too, babe.” He stumbles, ankle twisting and a stab of pain flashes through him. Venom lashes two tentacles down, bracing them, keeping them from falling over. Eddie nods his thanks. The ground his rutted and rocky, and his bones are still frail from the last few months.

In the distance, a line of military vehicles murmur away almost soundlessly; flying away into the air and over the mountains.

Venom’s right, they need a ride. And they need it quickly. As fast as they can, before this world fades out completely.


End file.
